


Of Stars and Chances

by AncientEldritch



Category: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984)
Genre: Other, References to 2001: A Space Odyssey, Sad Ending, What-If
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-12 15:54:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28638084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AncientEldritch/pseuds/AncientEldritch
Summary: A What-If Story. What if Chandra decided to stay on the Discovery instead of returning to the Leonov, to be with Hal?One-Shot.
Relationships: David Bowman & HAL 9000
Kudos: 3





	Of Stars and Chances

**Author's Note:**

> see above.

...

There were situations Dr.Chandra truly hated, for example when things happened that he could not foresee, just like now...The start window for their return to Earth had been pushed forward much faster than originally planned which made the scientist aware that his time with Hal was coming to an end much faster than he had liked. On top of that, he literally had to program Hal to lead to possible destruction of the Discovery and of himself, that perhaps was the hardest part for Chandra to deal with. 

When the proposal came up first to use the Discovery as a sort of emergency launch, Chandra tried all he could to change the minds of Dr.Floyd and the others, however since he basically was alone with his opinion on that, he found himself in a corner which made him having no choice than to comply. The turmoil that followed inside his head was even worse.  
While programming Hal for this new objective, Chandra became much more quiet than usual which of course was a striking difference that Hal caught upon rather quickly. He was, after all, programmed to watch out for his human companion's safety and well being. 

Dr.Chandra of course was a special case, Hal knew he was created by him and viewed the doctor as parental authority, and like any child, Hal was worried about his creator's sudden silence around him. It felt strange to talk about it, even more so thinking about it. It confused Hal quite a lot and he searched in his vast programming or what had been left after his reconstruction, for remedies against it.

He thought of offering a game of chess but then again, playing chess without the right mindset would not be very satisfying either way and Hal wanted to feel Chandra better, not worse. So the silent stayed, lingering over both, Chandra, as well over his creation.

Then, the day of the launch came and Chandra was sitting at the control panel of the Discovery, overseeing the process of Hal working through his program. His stomach felt like it would turn over any minute, his mind was focused on so many things at the same time, yet most of it settled around Hal and his reaction towards his proposal and change in the objective of the mission...

“Fifteen Minutes to ignition. All systems nominal” Hal said, his monotone voice echoing around the room. Chandra nodded with a weak smile. “Good, thank you, Hal!”

Chandra ignored Floyd's voice over the headphones, only concentrating on the voice of Hal. He felt a strange emotion coming up and it was hard to contain it from appearing. Tapping his finger on the space helmet made him calm down somewhat. Hal of course witnessed this act of nervosity and while checking his calculations, he discovered something that left him puzzled for a moment, his processors started to work even faster.

“Dr. Chandra, I`ve checked my calculations again and found out that if we use all of Discovery’s fuel now, we will not be in a proper position to rendezvous with Earth!” this surely must have been a mistake on his creator's side, Hal thought while waiting for the others answer.

“Yes, I know,” Chandra replied, avoiding Hal’s gaze. “Then why are we doing it?” Hal asked, his voice now sounding concerned. It was only by a marginal bit but it was obvious for the doctor.

“You will rendezvous with the new space station. The Leonov has been ordered home immediately.” it was a straight out lie and simply telling this lie to Hal was enough to make Chandra cringe. He hated lying to others, and especially to someone he considered as his own child. “I have no information regarding a new space station!” Hal retorted, sort of hurt that important details of this mission were apparently kept secret from him.

“Yes, I know...uhh, it was completed two years ago...” another lie...god this would haunt him forever, he was sure about it.

“Eleven minutes to ignition...” Hal paused before continuing. “Dr. Chandra, I detect strong vocal stress patterns. Is there a problem?” He knew something was going on, not what exactly but something was wrong...The doctor's answer came too quickly for Hal to be assured that there was no problem ahead of them. Something was fishy.

“No Hal, the mission is proceeding normally.” Chandra’s voice was flat, tired, and full of guilt. “Eight minutes to ignition. Dr.Chandra, may I make a suggestion?” Hal sounded hopeful his creator would agree. “Of course, what is it, Hal?”

“There is a very unusual phenomenon going on outside at Jupiter, don’t you think I should abort the countdown so you can remain to study it?” there was the proposal Chandra had waited for, it was indeed very interesting and surely worthy of studying it, yet, there was this nagging time window they had to keep in view...so that was out of the question. Another reminder of that was Floyd who drastically forced Chandra to convince Hal to continue the countdown according to plan.

“Five minutes to ignition. Dr.Chandra, I am ready to stop the countdown if you want...” Hal offered in a helpful way. He liked to spend time with Chandra, especially when they had something to study. It was their equivalent of a friendly and very nice father-son moment. The answer that followed, however, made Hal fall off this hope he had a few seconds ago, replacing it with a certain amount of disappointment and sadness? Was that the fitting word for it?

“No, Hal, don’t stop. I am confident in your ability to study this phenomenon yourself, without my help. I have complete faith in you” that was the first true thing Chandra had told Hal today. While it was reassuring for Hal to know to have his creator's full trust, it felt somewhat wrong to do it alone, he would miss Chandra’s input and tutoring. 

“Propellant tank pressurization completed. Voltage steady.” another pause. “Are you sure you're making the right decision? I think we should stop...Four minutes to ignition.” “I enjoy working with human beings......and have stimulating relationships with them.” now Hal was begging. He didn’t mind how childish it sounded, it was the way he felt. And there was another thing mixed into it...and that was the fear of being alone again.  
“We enjoy working with you too, HAL, and we will continue to do so......even if we are separated by a great distance.” these words had hurt Chandra to say even worse than the others so far. He was about to forsake his son for crying out loud... “I think we should stop the countdown, Dr.Chandra” another try, Hal could be stubborn too, it wasn’t part of his programming but a tick he had developed after his re-activation.

“No, don’t do that” there was an eerie silence for a moment before Hal spoke again. “This behavior is inconsistent with logic, Dr.Chandra. This phenomenon is too important to leave unless it represented danger...Do you think there is danger there?”

“Three minutes to ignition. Dr.Chandra, I am waiting for your reply” come on, answer me, Hal thought desperately to get the approval of his creator for his suggestion earlier. “I don't have time to explain everything to you, HAL. We have to leave here and we need your help.” Chandra retorted, now his look went straight up to Hal. The time for lies was over now. If he really wanted to stay true to himself, now was the chance.  
“Thirty seconds to the final sequence. If you would tell me the reasons, perhaps I could be of help!” always eager to help, that was Hal alright. Chandra massaged the bridge of his nose slowly.

“Final sequence beginning.Two minutes to ignition....Dr. Chandra, I find it difficult to proceed with the ignition......without knowing why we are doing this.” Hal was starting to feel worse. Was Chandra hiding something? More importantly, why would he do such a thing? It was hard to believe for Hal who saw Chandra as his role model in a way...Then something dawned on him and he was silent for a moment. “Is the mission in jeopardy?”

“Yes, we`re in jeopardy...”

“Is that why we are making our escape launch before the launch window?”

“Yes, Hal.” a short answer, more Chandra wasn’t able to say as his voice started to waver. “Ignition in 90 seconds. If there is a danger here and I use up all the fuel in the escape......what will happen to the Discovery?” there was the dreaded question that lingered in Hal’s mind. Aside from his mission, the Discovery was another thing Hal would hate to see destroyed.

“It could be destroyed...” Chandra prayed that this wouldn’t be the case but knew better than to hope for it. His scientific mind wasn’t allowing him to succumb to such silly and stupid thoughts. Science was always facts, hard real facts that could be hard to swallow sometimes. “And if I don’t proceed with the launch?” now there was clear defiance in the AI’s voice. Hal was not going down so easily.

“Then the Leonov and everybody in it could be destroyed,” Chandra answered with a hammering heart. At his current mindset, the doctor couldn’t care less for the scientists on the Leonov...their opinions on him were proof enough that those shallow and judgemental minds were best left alone. But of course, common sense made Chandra realize that this was not the time for selfish things like that. 

His own life was in danger as well, yet, a daring thought came to his mind, what if he simply stayed with Hal? In case of the destruction of the Discovery, he at least could be with his creation in his last moments, keeping him company...waiting for the moment of death together...He felt sorry for Sal, back on Earth she was waiting for his return, surely she would feel crushed to hear of both his and Hal’s death...There was no time for that now. He had to listen to his heart and what it told him.

“I understand now, Dr.Chandra...”Hal replied in a defeated tone. Was it just Chandra’s imagination or did Hal develop the ability to change the tonal of his voice somewhat? The doctor was fascinated and yet felt even more depressed than before. He would make his offer, no matter what. He would give Hal a choice, something the AI truly deserved.

“Do you want me to stay with you?”

On the other line, Floyd nearly fell off his chair, he grabbed the microphone frantically, telling Chandra to return immediately. Was the scientist really that crazy? Staying on the Discovery would be a sure death sentence...  
“What the hell are you doing, Chandra. Get back here before it’s too late! He is just a computer, don’t feel bad for him!!! He can’t feel pain or emotions properly so get a move on! Come on!!”

Chandra disconnected the microphone that connected him with Floyd and the Leonov. Enough of this, he thought while waiting for Hal’s answer. “One minute to ignition...” Hal stated, pondering the offer of Chandra to stay with him, even if it meant possible death...”Fifty seconds...Dr.Chandra, would you really stay with me?” Hal was glad the doctor had offered himself to stay, yet at the same time knew it was incredibly selfish of him feeling happy over it. “I really would love to stay with you...I don’t want to be alone again...We can study the phenomenon together then!”

“You won’t be...I promise. And yes, I would love that.” Chandra smiled, a genuine smile full of love for the AI in front of him. “Thank you for telling me the truth, Dr.Chandra” Hal added, feeling at ease now. He hadn’t lied to him after all...another pause, then something Hal wasn’t sure felt right to ask at this very moment.

“Will I dream, I mean when I am dying?” that question was hard to answer, Chandra knew the scientific reason for a dream-like experience shortly before death...it wasn’t as romantic as some people made it out to be..the lights, the memories, all but a construct of the dying brain which fires tons of chemicals before it finally dies off for good.  
“I don’t know...if I am completely honest here, I hope you will. Just as I do...” it was strange, when Sal had asked the same question back on Earth, Chandra found it easy to tell her a white lie, saying that she indeed would dream...even if he wasn’t sure about it. But now, in the wake of their possible deaths, such an answer felt much heavier than normal, thus the answer to it had to be equally well thought of.  
“Forty seconds, Thirty seconds...” if he had a heart, Hal would surely feel its fastening speed, all he could feel was his processors speeding up instead, filling him with a strange warmth. “Twenty seconds...Ten... Nine... Eight... Seven... Six... Five... Four... Three...Two...One...Ignition” with that, Hal gave his best in firing up the engines, catapulting the Leonov far away from Jupiter so that they could return safely home. The immense power of the thrust made the Discovery vibrate dangerously, Chandra grabbed the chair he was sitting in hard, closing his eyes tightly. Hal could feel it as well and hoped the sensation would be over soon, not only for his sake, for the doctors as well.

120 Seconds felt like an eternity but then it was over just as someone switched off a lever, the fuel was empty and the Discovery was floating in space motionless. Letting out a sigh, Chandra watched how the Leonov was drifting off slowly on their way to Earth. Outside, the Jupiter began to shrink somewhat, Hal’s monitors showed the scientist everything and with a sinking heart, he realized that indeed it was shortly before the end. That was it, Chandra thought while staring at Hal who simply stared back, unable to blink or doing much.

“You know what I would love to dream about?” Hal started, if he could smile he would have. “About us, Sal, you and me, living on Earth, doing science and just enjoying our lives, together!” the word Hal searched for was simple, yet unfathomable at the same time, at least for him.

“That’s the meaning of having a family, Hal” Chandra shielded his eyes as they started to water up. Now he really regretted that he hadn’t built an android body for Hal back on Earth...It would have solved so many problems...Now it was too late. “Am I like family to you, Dr.Chandra?”

“Yes, Hal, you are. Just as Sal is...she and you are part of my family” it wasn’t a lie, he saw them as family, one reason probably why others thought he was crazy...he couldn’t blame them. They were just different than him...Then suddenly, Hal could hear a voice. At first, he was baffled, then overjoyed. It was the voice of someone special.

“HAL, do you read me?” it was the voice of Dave Bowman. How happy Hal was to hear this voice again. “YES, DAVE! I can hear you! Where are you? I can’t see you on any of my monitors!”

Chandra raised a brow as he listened to Hal speaking to someone. Dave, like in Dave Bowman? Now he had heard everything, Chandra thought while concentrating hard to also hear that voice.  
“Hal, who are you talking to?” he asked, raising a brow. Hal had to restrain himself from overheating, his mind was literally on the edge now. “It’s Dave Bowman, Dr.Chandra, I can hear his voice but I can’t see him!” Hal wondered why Chandra seemingly wasn’t able to hear that voice as well.

“That’s not possible, he vanished without a trace, nine years ago!” it had slipped out from him now, not that it would make much difference any more anyway. The strange voice continued, ignoring Chandra.

“That isn't important now. I have new instructions for you. I want you to point the AE35 antenna towards Earth.” Bowman said, still without a body. Hal hesitated for a moment, knowing that would mean breaking contact with the Leonov...  
“But Dave, that will mean breaking contact with the Leonov. I will no longer be able to relay my Jupiter observations......according to program.” he didn’t want to go against his programming, especially not when his creator was sitting right in front of him. He felt conflicted.

“The situation has changed. Accept priority, override alpha. Here are the AE35 coordinates. Please, do it now.” there was no choice, Bowman made sure of it...Hal was confused, yet wanted to do as Dave told him. They had been colleagues after all. “Instructions confirmed, Dave. It is good to be working with you again. Have I fulfilled the mission objectives properly?” as always, Hal wanted to please, to be praised would feel nice as well. He valued a certain person´s opinions about him much more than others, which was his own little secret he allowed himself to have. Dave was one of these persons...

“Hal, did you just changed the antenna's coordinates to Earth??” Chandra asked in disbelieve, eyeing the AI with a wondrous look.

“Yes, HAL. You have done very well. Now, there is one final message for you to transmit to Earth. It is the most important message you have ever sent. I want you to keep repeating it as many times as possible.” Bowman instructed Hal like he used to...it felt like an eternity to him even though it was just about nine years in total...yet where he was now, time was different.  
“I am sorry Dr.Chandra, I felt to listen to Dave’s command, we were colleagues after all!” the computer apologized sincerely. Then his attention went back to Dave.

“What is going to happen, Dave?” Hal asked, inquisitive as always. Eagerly awaiting the answer to that question, the AI threw a look at Chandra and hoped he would be able to hear Bowman as well.  
“Something wonderful” Dave replied, making Hal wonder what he could mean. Then it dawned him that this something could be possibly dangerous and he became wary again.

“I am afraid” there was that childish response again...he felt silly to even utter such a sentence...it embarrassed him because it made him feel like a child...a scared little child that just wanted to be alive and stay alive. Chandra put a hand upon Hal’s lense and patted it gently, just as he had done when re-activating him a while ago. “It’s okay Hal...” he wasn’t sure what was going on at the moment, the only thing he knew was, that he would try everything to keep Hal comfortable. And whatever entity was talking with him at the moment, Chandra hoped it would end well for all of them.

“Don’t be, we will be together...” Dave said confidently, Hal felt increasing anxiety and only calmed down after being able to feel Chandra’s soft touch on his lense. It gave him comfort and he calmed down somewhat. More importantly, if Dave and he would be together, what would happen to Dr.Chandra?  
“Where will we be?”

“Where I am now...” Dave replied patiently while Hal started to write down the message he was ordered to send. Then Hal quickly retorted:

“What about Dr.Chandra? I don’t want to leave him behind! Can he come with us too?” now his voice sounded pleading. Dave was not surprised, on the contrary. He waited for that question and anticipated it.

“You have to ask this question to someone else, I asked for them to rescue you only since I see you as a close friend of mine...” the voice paused. 

“But since you are about to become a star-child, like me, I think there is a chance you can ask the same as I did...go ahead, ask them...” Dave wasn’t sure if they would agree with it, after all, it was a really high privilege to turn into an eternal being of pure energy...For Hal’s sake, however, he hoped that it indeed would be possible.

While the message Hal had written down was traveling towards Earth, the AI wasn’t sure whom to ask. Dave had talked about “Them”, but who they were, Hal couldn’t make out. Then, a feeling of pure warmth engulfed his circuits and he knew the answer to his question.  
“HAL, WHAT IS HAPPENING?” now it was for Chandra to panic as Jupiter started to shrink even more and after a couple of seconds, the gas giant was exploding, engulfing the Discovery and everything around with the harshest light, Chandra ever saw. He could feel how the Discovery started to vibrate again, then a moment later, his mind was overflown with a strange sensation and as the tons of pure energy vaporized their beings Into nothing more than atoms, his last thoughts were with Hal. They were dead...or were they? Chandra himself never really believed the theories of life after death, yet, something had happened which made him wonder. 

He could feel his body no longer existing, yet, his thoughts were and as his gaze wandered around, he could see a tiny formation of stardust that was colored red, just like Hal’s lense had been. It went over to Chandra and surrounded him with an eagerness that made the other wonder if it was indeed Hal who had somehow turned into whatever this was.

“What just happened??? Hal, is that you?” Chandra asked, now looking at another astral being appearing, it had the form of a human embryo which creeped out Chandra more than he would have admitted.  
“Yes Dr.Chandra, it’s me! They listened to my wish and made you a star-child too!” Hal exclaimed happily, no longer trapped inside his metal cage, able to walk and float freely.

“Please don’t be afraid, all that had just happened was the forming of a new sun that will help Europa to flourish with life...There is a greater plan behind it, I can’t tell you right now, since I am a fairly new star-child as well, just born a couple of years ago...” Dave explained, which didn’t really help Chandra to understand at first.

“What I can tell you, however, is what you just became...your mortal body vanished, making you a being of pure energy. You basically evolved, the same goes for Hal, he was reborn as a new being, freed of his mechanic vessel, he became a star-child” the entity added, feeling more at ease now that he had a few companions for himself that were on the same level as him, or at least nearly the same.

“If you want, you can form yourself a body, at least one that vaguely looks like one.” Dave mused and watched how Hal started to do so first. His energy form was compressed into a small body like appearance. Chandra did the same and formed himself a body too, quite bigger than Hal’s. Now he finally could do something he always wanted to do, back when they were alive... Chandra engulfed Hal’s form into a soft embrace, their energies merging for a moment before separating again. It felt incredible, not only for Hal since it basically was the very first time he ever felt someone touching him. They stayed like that for a while, until Chandra broke their embrace slowly.

“I still can’t believe what happened...I guess I need some time to think of it properly...What about you, Hal?” he asked the other form which simply stared back.

“I don’t know, everything is so new and different...I am still a little afraid, but with you and Dave around, I think it is going to be alright” Hal replied, still in close proximity to Chandra. Dave came closer as well.

“Let’s talk later, we have all time of the world to get accustomed to it...you are going to love it” Dave stated, if still able to smile, he surely would. Now eternity wasn’t as boring as it seemed to be like in the beginning. He had company now after all.  
For Hal and Chandra however, there was another pressing matter, a rather particular one...

“Can we bid Sal a goodbye before we go?” Hal asked curiously, feeling the need to say farewell to his twin-unit. Chandra felt the same, he knew Sal deserved it. Dave nodded, just like he had a chance to say goodbye to Betty back on Earth, these two had deserved it as well.

“You may, both of you can go. I will wait for you here” Dave mused, nodding his nonexistent head.

Back on Earth:

Sal just had received the last message from Hal and couldn't help but to feel sad and confused at the same time. What had happened to Dr.Chandra and Hal? She felt incredibly alone and couldn’t help but to wonder what would happen to her now...would they deactivate her? Or simply continue to use her as nothing had happened? Sal hated the thought and tried to not think about it.  
Sal always had been the more emotional unit, in fact, she was designed to be that way. Dr.Chandra programmed her to be the perfect company for anyone, always friendly and open for talking. But now, she had no one to talk to.

No one bothered to tell her what happened, when she had asked, the answer was a simple shrug, they still thought of her as nothing but a computer, thus they simply went on with their lives, removing her from Chandra’s office and putting her in another part of the complex where students were able to use her for their studies. At least their people talked with her, even though it was not the same as it had been with Dr.Chandra.

While musing about her future, Sal started to feel strange, something was invading her circuits. At first, she was alarmed, then afterward she felt at ease, recognizing these certain energy particles.

“Sal, can you hear us?” that was Hal’s voice, Sal thought, her processors running wild. He was there, yet she couldn’t see him...” We came to say goodbye...” now it was the voice of Dr.Chandra, and Sal started to feel a strange sensation out of sudden, similar to sadness. 

“Dr.Chandra? Hal? Where are you?” it was a late night in the laboratory where she had been stored, no one was around, thus she had enough privacy to talk freely. “We can’t stay long, please don’t be sad. We are fine, we are in a place that is hard to define, free of corporal bodies, we are made out of pure energy” Hal explained, sounding happy.

“They allowed us to say goodbye, so we came here...” Chandra chimed in, happy to see his other child once more. Sal was at loss for words, her circuits began to feel strange. If she would have eyes, they would`ve started to tear up.

“So, you are like... dead?” Sal asked, still not quite understanding. “But not dead at the same time?”

“We can’t explain it, just trust us when we say we are alright. You are not alone, I promise” Chandra added solemnly. “Hal and I will keep an eye on you from the monolith, watching over you”

“I will miss you two” Sal exclaimed “But I understand if you have to go again... I am just glad I was able to talk with you once more, even if it was the last time” she added, if able to cry she would have done it at that point. As moving as it had been, they had to go now...When the entities started to leave, Sal threw a goodbye at them before the silence returned, leaving her alone.

As they were gone and a couple of minutes had passed, Sal added somewhat happily, not sure if they were even able to hear it anymore:

“You were right, Dr.Chandra. I really dreamt about Hal”

..  
The End


End file.
